Dread Pirate Kanata
by Ember Nickel
Summary: Go to sleep, I'll hack you in the morning. (Or, the intercepted communications of Master Codebreaker and Maz Kanata, pre-TFA.)


According to the visual dictionary, the Master Codebreaker we see in Episode VIII kept his personal identity publicly encrypted, and anyone who decoded it was welcome to become the new Master Codebreaker. I've taken some creative liberties from there.

* * *

To: mavencipher AT hosnia DOT galrep  
From: dreadnought AT bespin DOT freewebs

Esteemed Master,

Your layers of secrecy may be impenetrable enough for those do-gooders who insist on following orderly process, but some of us scoundrels don't play by the rules. The Pirate Sound has pooled its resources and will begin unmasking your secret identity soon. I thought it was only fair to give you warning so that you could take appropriate precautions, as this might be a bit too easy at our current pace.

Hope your current questionable business ventures are proving profitable.

With my regards,

Kanata

From: dreadnought  
To: mavencipher

Kanata,

The way you continually refer to your pirate collective is endearing, but no self-respecting (or self-preserving) rogue would stay in your vicinity for longer than it takes to get drunk and leave the premises, and you're too paranoid to let anyone into your network to collaborate with you. So I can only assume this is an individual effort to seek me out, disguised as a noble cooperative effort. I'm not sure whether that's preemptive humility (what an adorable change of pace from you!) because you think you can work as fast as a dozen sentients, or preemptive passing-the-credit when it doesn't work.

Don't think your display address can fool me, there's nothing on Bespin to lure you but clouds of hot air. Then again, maybe that's appropriate.

I'm doing plenty well, and have recently purchased a new security droid to dissuade any unwanted advances.

Warmly,  
Master Codebreaker

* * *

MC,

I find I don't need the bonds of friendship or loyalty or whatever ideals you're going to expound on next to gain colleagues. My fellow pirates appreciate fair compensation for their time and effort, and I have plenty of ways to earn a credit or two.

You're right that I have no long-term designs on Bespin, but it's past due for a change of appendages. Once every generation or so should be fitting, don't you think?

All the best to your new droid. I'm sure it'll work admirably in fending off any unwanted solicitations. I note that you've replied to my cautionary signals, so I can only assume my further comms are tolerable. If not, you are welcome to try filtering them out, which will of course more narrowly triangulate your current location.

Best,  
Kanata

* * *

Commendable Kanata,

I estimate with a high degree of probability that your trickery leaves lesser sentients befuddled. Is it true that you resort to the ways of the Force to beguile them, or do you merely count cards?

It seems accurate that Cloud City would benefit from the renewal and creativity that accompanies a change of leadership, yet could also thrive under the constancy of stable institutions and organized handover periods. Indeed, many locales must struggle with this paradox.

I have successfully blocked hacking attempts from multiple unknown sources and provided anonymity for countless asynchronous transactions. My work continues apace. As does that of the Master Codebreaker, who is far too busy at this time to respond to you in person.

Openly,  
Security Droid LN-10

* * *

LN-10,

I have no need to call upon mystical powers to outwit other gamblers, and would in fact consider that a breach of our network of trust. (Yes, we do have such things, as isolated as your partner the Master Codebreaker might be!) As for whether I count cards, well, once I've pinpointed you perhaps we can play a friendly game. Not for stakes, you understand, you'll have other concerns.

I'm afraid I'm no historian. The pundits that bemoan the cyclical tendencies of history and the unstable islands of peace amid war and darkness have always been a bit cynical for my tastes. Then again, I suppose you could say I'm interested in triumphs of a more transient nature, relishing my memory of victories that last even as the galaxy moves on around me.

Congratulations on your work, I'm sure it must be very fulfilling for you. Do give my regards to the Master.

I remain,  
Kanata

* * *

Kanata,

You might call yourself no historian, but in persevering to locate me, what are you doing but turning to the past? Hoping that it might guide you, give you clues to where I have been, and that those in turn might illuminate who I once was. Someone of no consequence, perhaps, and yet I have captivated you nonetheless.

For all my love of the technologies of the present day, I too have some minor affection for the motions of the past. The more you obsess with my challenges, the more I learn of your bartending history, and it enthralls me. You are not as enigmatic as you might like to believe you are.

LN-10 sends her regards.

Best wishes,  
MC

* * *

"Master,"

Your evasion is no match for my cryptographic skills. Meet me in Wamesh. It should be a short flight over from your current base of operations on the second moon of Cheo. I'd be happy to meet LN-10, but that's at both of your discretions.

-Kanata

* * *

A small orange woman paced around a rock garden on the barren world of Wamesh. Sculptures of stone towered above her, their delicate balance the product of wind and time.

A pale human man speedwalked amid the rocks, blaster in hand and flower on his chest. Looking down, he seemed to take little notice of the boulders surrounding him, only keeping an eye out for company.

"No false moves," whirred a bronze security droid. "State your name and business."

"You must be LN-10," he said. "It's an honor to meet you in the flesh. Metal. Whichever."

"Flattered," said LN-10, in a voice that suggested nothing of the kind.

"My original name would mean nothing to you. It's the name I'm assuming that's your concern. I don't suppose you come with the title."

"Kanata," grinned the woman. "I expected someone more...dreadful."

"Master," he bowed sardonically. "I expected you to be...taller."

"You'd have liked my predecessor. An intellectual Hutt who wanted to get out of the economy there, thought virtual currency was the wave of the future. He masked himself well, I only caught him because he sent a few messages in Huttese. Don't know where he got to after that. Coruscant, I reckon."

Kanata was momentarily taken aback. "I hope you've been preparing a better backup plan?" he finally asked.

"Not on purpose," the Master Codebreaker admitted. "But I may have stumbled into one."

"Oh?"

"It was LN-10 who helped figure it out. There hasn't only been one Pirate Maz Kanata, has there? The bar is ancient, but the bartenders...well, they come and go too. Not as a challenge, just as a fact of life."

"Very perceptive," said Kanata. "Long ago, far away...Takodana's always been there. Some things need to be carried through."

"So if you're becoming the new Master Codebreaker, well, I think your bar will need someone to look in on it every so often. I'm sure the pirate code of trust will let them fend for themselves by and large, but you never know."

"You'd be one of the shorter owners," Kanata said, "but not the first Force-sensitive. Yes, you'd do quite nicely."

"Ah," said the Master. "You think you know all my secrets?"

"Not all," Kanata said. "What do you do with the Force if you're not cheating at cards?"

"Come back to my ship, and I can show you."

"Hmm. But what do I call you now?"

"We'll figure it out along the way," she smiled. "You'll find even Masters still have much to learn."

That, he decided, was a burden he could welcome.


End file.
